Gideon58's Reviews

→ in
Tools    






1959's Imitation of Life was one of those lush, weepy, Ross Hunter melodramas that Lana Turner had a copyright on during this decade. The film followed the relationship that developed between a struggling actress (Turner) and an unemployed black woman (Juanita Moore) and their daughters. Lana becomes a Broadway star in about 10 minutes and Moore becomes her housekeeper. Their daughters grow up and turn into Sandra Dee (Susie) and Susan Kohner (Sarah Jane).

Sarah Jane's father was white and she has spent much of her life trying to pass for white because she is very light-skinned but her mother will never let her forget that she is black. There is an unintentionally funny scene where Sarah Jane's high school boyfriend finds out she's half-black and beats her up. I know that may not seem comical, but Kohner's half-baked performance takes it to that level as she's lying in an alley wiping her face and screaming at her boyfriend to come back.

Lana has her share of funny moments too...especially laughable is a scene where she agrees to accompany a lecherous agent (Robert Alda in a very amusing performance)to a party and finally realizes what he expects in exchange for helping her with her career, symbolized (as it had to be in the 50's) by his "gift" of a mink coat to wear to the party. Sandra Dee also garners chuckles as Lana's neglected daughter grows up and falls in love with her mother's boyfriend (John Gavin) and loses it when he rejects her.

The only completely satisfying performance in the film is by Juanita Moore as Annie, who brings so much more substance to the role than the script provides. She received an Oscar nomination for her performance as did Susan Kohner (God knows why). For unintentional giggles, this movie rates right up there with VALLEY OF THE DOLLS.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Imitation1.jpg
Views:	2295
Size:	76.0 KB
ID:	14912   Click image for larger version

Name:	Imitation2.jpg
Views:	3378
Size:	56.4 KB
ID:	14913   Click image for larger version

Name:	Imitation3.jpg
Views:	2220
Size:	16.2 KB
ID:	14914  




Kevin Kline offers a brilliant comic turn in the 1997 comedy In & Out. Kline plays Howard Brackett, a small town history teacher who excitedly sits down to watch the Academy Awards this year because one of his former students (Matt Dillon) is a nominee. He is nominated for his performance in a film where he plays a gay soldier and when he wins, he thanks Howard in his speech for inspiring him because Howard is gay. Now this floors Howard because he has no clue why this guy would say this on international television because he's not gay.

Howard is even engaged to be married (to Joan Cusack, in an Oscar-nominated performance)so he has no idea where Dillon's Cameron Drake got the idea that he is gay and finds he has to defend himself to everyone at school but is shocked that no one seemed terribly shocked by what Cameron said on the Oscars.

Howard has a birthday party where he is given birthday presents like the soundtrack to Yentl and ends up explaining to his guests why Barbra Streisand was contractually obligated to make Funny Lady, subjects not broached at birthday parties for heterosexuals. His parents (Wilford Brimley, Debbie Reynolds) are shocked but promise to support their son, even if he is gay.

He also gets a visit from an out of town reporter (Tom Selleck) who wants to do an article about him because he's gay too. The moment when Selleck plants a big kiss right on Kline's lips is a classic. But all of these little things have Howard actually questioning his sexuality and wondering if he really is gay...much to the aggravation and frustration of his fiancée, Cusack, who is beyond confused. The scene where she leaves a bar in her wedding gown and stands in the middle of street screaming about the lack of single straight men in the world is a classic.

But what I like about this movie is the way Kline fully invests in the role and was not afraid to look foolish or look gay. There is a fabulous scene, probably the most famous from the film, where he buys a record, on how to be macho, and the guy on the record is talking about how real men don't dance and a disco tune comes on (I WILL SURVIVE if memory serves)and the narrator on the record says no matter what you do, don't dance, but Howard can't help himself and he ends up shaking his groove thing all over the room. It's hysterically funny and Kline plays it with sincerity and gusto.

The film is not pro or anti gay...it's just a deft and amusing character study about a man trying to figure out exactly who he is. Wonderful film.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	IN2.jpg
Views:	2765
Size:	30.7 KB
ID:	14916   Click image for larger version

Name:	IN1.jpg
Views:	2215
Size:	10.9 KB
ID:	14917  



Bright light. Bright light. Uh oh.
1959's IMITATION OF LIFE
You wrote this quite awhile ago since it's now considered a great and serious film. You've also got some factual errors; i.e. Sarah Jane's dad was not white.
__________________
It's what you learn after you know it all that counts. - John Wooden
My IMDb page




A couple of years ago, I finally managed to get It's a Mad, Mad, Mad Mad World on video. I saw it as a kid and remember enjoying it but watching it again some 40 years later, I still found myself LMAO.

This is still the granddaddy of all comedy/adventures directed by Stanley Kramer, who up to this point had only directed serious dramas like The Defiant Ones and Judgment at Nuremburg. A comedy with an over three hour running time was something completely novel back in 1963 and Kramer was hardly the first director that would have been associated with such an assignment.

A dying man (Jimmy Durante) who was thrown from a car that careened over a cliff, tells a group of witnesses to the accident (Sid Ceasar, Mickey Rooney, Buddy Hackett, Milton Berle, Jonathan Winters) that there is $350,000.00 hidden under a big "W" in a nearby town, which sets off one of the wildest, craziest chase comedies made in the history of cinema.

A rather tired and haggard looking Spencer Tracy heads the cast as the cop on the trail of these greedy money-mongers and just about every comedian or comic actor alive in 1963 appears in this film, either in a starring role or cameo and despite this impressive gathering of the best comedic talent in the business, towering over all of them in one of her few film performances, is Broadway legend Ethel Merman, who gives the performance of a lifetime as Berle's shrew of a mother-in-law. Her performance alone makes It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World worth seeing. Check out this classic if you've never seen it.

Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Mad1.jpg
Views:	2028
Size:	41.6 KB
ID:	14918   Click image for larger version

Name:	Mad2.jpg
Views:	2071
Size:	52.7 KB
ID:	14919  




Denzel Washington continues to prove why he is one of the best actors in the business with his performance in John Q, a moving, emotional, and tension-charged drama about a family man whose son needs a heart transplant; however, due to financial problems, his insurance won't cover the cost of getting his son on the donor list so John Q decides to take hostages in the hospital until someone arranges for his son to be on the donor list.

This film sheds an unflattering light on the medical profession and its sometimes insensitive obsession with money and how the sanctity of human life only has validity if it can paid for. This movie had me praying that I never contract a serious illness because I know I wouldn't be able to afford the treatment.

Despite a preachy and simplistic screenplay, the intense direction and first-rate performances make this film work. I particularly loved Denzel's work here because this was a character unlike he had ever played before...Denzel usually plays well-educated, intelligent lawyers and/or businessmen (with the obvious exception of Training Day), but here Denzel is playing an average Joe...a working stiff, struggling to pay bills and keep food on the table and a roof over his family's head who is driven to extreme measures to protect the family he cherishes so dearly.

Washington gets strong support from Robert Duvall, solid as always as the hostage negotiator, James Woods as a wimpy surgeon, Anne Heche as an unsympathetic hospital administrator, and especially Kimberly Elise as John's wife. An emotional drama, wrought with tension, that will rivet you to the screen.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	John_Q_film_poster.jpg
Views:	2058
Size:	31.4 KB
ID:	14920   Click image for larger version

Name:	JohnQ2.jpg
Views:	2691
Size:	198.9 KB
ID:	14921  




Kiss Me Kate is the 1953 adaptation of the 1948 Cole Porter musical, revamped to accommodate the MGM stable of talent.

This re-working of the musical follows an egomaniacal actor/director named Fred Graham (the late Howard Keel)who agrees to persuade his ex-wife and leading lady, Lilli Vanessi (Kathryn Grayson) to work with him in a musical version of Taming of the Shrew and the complications that ensue in the mounting of the production as well as the parallels between the lives of Fred and Lilli to Petruchio and Kate.

Several songs have been cut or re-thought, mostly to good advantage. Keel and Grayson's duet "So in Love" is absolutely gorgeous as is Keel's haunting rendition of "Were Thine That Special Face" and Grayson's surprisingly energetic "I Hate Men." Ann Miller had the best role of her career here as Lois Lane/Bianca and her rendition of "Too Darn Hot", compactly performed in Fred's living room is a classic. She also pairs well with Tommy Rall on "Always True to you Darling in My Fashion" and "Why Can't You Behave?" Miller shines with Rall, Bob Fosse, and Bobby Van on "Tom, Dick, or Harry" and Keel's interpretation of "Where is the Life that Late I Led?" is spectacular.

This movie also gave us the rare opportunity to see two of the greatest dancers of the 1950's, Bob Fosse and Carol Haney, dance a steamy pas de deux in "From this Moment On", which was clearly choreographed by Fosse, just a glimpse of his later genius. Anyone who is familiar with Fosse's future work as a choreographer will recognize immediately that he choreographed this portion of the number.

A delicious musical with superior singing and outstanding dance numbers and a pair of scene-stealing performances from Keenan Wynn and James Whitmore as a couple of Damon Runyan-type thugs make Kiss Me Kate a classic on all levels.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Kiss1.jpg
Views:	2050
Size:	58.1 KB
ID:	14926   Click image for larger version

Name:	Kiss3.jpg
Views:	2403
Size:	84.8 KB
ID:	14927   Click image for larger version

Name:	Kiss4.jpg
Views:	2271
Size:	16.9 KB
ID:	14928   Click image for larger version

Name:	Wunderbar.jpg
Views:	2126
Size:	50.8 KB
ID:	14929  



As far as this being a great and serious film, you are certainly entitled to your opinion, please allow me mine. I guess Sarah Jane's father being white was something that I just assumed.




Kramer Vs Kramer won five Oscars, including Best Picture of 1979. This intense and deeply moving family drama follows an advertising executive whose life is turned upside down when his wife of eight years, walks out on him, leaving him to care for his son and build the relationship with him he never had.

Robert Benton's incisive screenplay presents us flawed, but real human beings with hearts, souls, and brains. For instance, in the scene where Joanna announces to Ted she's leaving him, she doesn't just storm out the door...she gives him the keys, her credit cards, the dry cleaning ticket, tells him which bills have been paid, and informs him she has withdrawn from their bank account the same amount of money she had when they were married, no more. This decision to leave was not a whim...it was thought about and Joanna felt, with no other option than to leave, if she was leaving she was going to do it properly...and with no specific plan in mind, she did not think it right to take Billy.

Dustin Hoffman won an Oscar for his Ted Kramer, a man so obsessed with bringing home the bacon, he had no clue that his life at home was crumbling into pieces. Meryl Streep also won an Oscar playing Joanna, the unhappy wife who we feel sympathy for in the beginning of the film but that all changes when she returns for her son. Hoffman is at the top of his form here. I always tear up during the scene where he tries to explain to Billy (Oscar nominee Justin Henry) why his mom left and he does it all in a stage whisper or when he meets Joanna upon her return and slams her drink into a wall (a Hoffman moment not in the script that Streep was not told about in order to get a natural reaction). Justin Henry hits all the right notes as Billy, the confused little boy who doesn't know why his mom is gone and doesn't know how to communicate with his father. Jane Alexander also got an Oscar nod as Ted and Joanna's neighbor, Margaret, who has switched allegiances by the film's conclusion.

This is an intense family drama but there are laughs to be had here too...Billy and the chocolate chip ice cream...Billy pouting because Ted is late picking him up from a party...Billy catching his dad's one night stand (JoBeth Williams) on her way to the bathroom stark naked, but it's the moments of human drama you remember...Ted running through Manhattan with Billy in his arms to get to the emergency room after BIlly falls off the jungle gym...Ted getting fired right before beginning his custody battle and instead of making a scene, he tells the guy in a whisper..."Shame on you."

And of course, the finale where Joanna tells Ted she's not taking Billy, which I found a little hard to swallow. Why would she go to all that trouble of suing for custody and then just change her mind? But this is a small quibble regarding a wonderful movie, masterfully directed by Robert Benton and flawlessly performed by a top-notch cast. A must-see.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Kramer1.jpg
Views:	3190
Size:	31.3 KB
ID:	14930   Click image for larger version

Name:	Kramer4.jpg
Views:	3933
Size:	28.4 KB
ID:	14931   Click image for larger version

Name:	Kramer5.png
Views:	4571
Size:	382.9 KB
ID:	14932  




Time has not been good to Less than Zero, the 1987 drama about privileged California teens descending into a world of constant partying, drug, and alcohol; however, this film has obtained a sort of cult status among film buffs as one of those guilty pleasures that a lot of filmgoers might take pleasure at giggling at; however, I do not find a lot amusing about this film at all, unless yo u're talking about the wooden performances of Andrew McCarthy and Jamie Gertz as 2/3 of the star trio.

Less Than Zero will always be remembered because of the mesmerizing performance by Robert Downey, Jr. as Julian, a definite foreshadowing of his future and a role he played a little too well. Downey perfectly conveyed what cocaine addiction can do to a person. Julian eventually realizes there is no line he won't cross in an effort to get high, including prostituting himself with men in order to get his drugs.

Downey is sad, tragic, heartbreaking, and terrifying all at once in the showiest role of his career that he completely lost himself in. Julian is so real it's scary, whether he is horrified at McCarthy learning he is prostituting himself or begging his father (Nicholas Pryor) to let him come home because he would like to wake up and know where he is...just once.Less Than Zero is not great cinema, but the performance by Robert Downey Jr will stay with you for a long, long time.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Less1.jpg
Views:	2031
Size:	37.1 KB
ID:	14933   Click image for larger version

Name:	Less2.jpg
Views:	3920
Size:	189.8 KB
ID:	14934  




The 1986 film version of the Broadway musical Little Shop of Horrors is an entertaining movie based on the black comedy from the 1960's about a nerdy milquetoast who raises a man-eating plant that gets totally out of control. Rick Moranis is perfection as Seymour, the nebbish who is at a loss at what to do when his own Frankenstein grows too big for him to control and Ellen Greene (reprising her role in the original musical) is delightful as Audrey, the object of Seymour's affections.

Moranis and Greene make one of the most engaging screen teams I've seen in a while. Vincent Gardenia plays the greedy flower shop owner, Mr. Mushnik and Bill Murray is hysterically funny in one scene as Arthur Denton, a man who seems to enjoy going to the dentist a little too much. Tischina Arnold, Tisha Campbell, and Michelle Weeks are awesome as the Greek Chorus known as "The Urchins" and Steve Martin practically steals the movie as "Orin Scrivello, DDS". His song "Be a Dentist" is hysterically funny. The voice of the plant, Audrey II, is provided by Levar Stubbs of The Four Tops and he is superb. Despite a rather mean-spirited climax, this is a fun musical comedy that the whole family can enjoy. 7/10
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Horrors1.jpg
Views:	1981
Size:	26.7 KB
ID:	14937   Click image for larger version

Name:	Horrors2.jpg
Views:	2222
Size:	168.9 KB
ID:	14939  




After losing the role of Eliza in the film version of My Fair Lady, Julie Andrews got sweet revenge and an Oscar for her film debut in 1964's Mary Poppins, a dazzling, enchanting family musical which was personally overseen by Walt Disney himself, who hand-picked Andrews for the title role.

Based on the books by P.L. Travers, this film centers around the Banks family of London 1912, whose most recent Nanny (Elsa Lanchester)has just quit after the children (Matthew Garber, Karen Dotrice)have run away again chasing an out of control kite.

George Banks (David Tomlinson) begins to advertise for a new Nanny when the children come to him with their own advertisement, which George dismisses, tears up, and throws in the fireplace. We then see the pieces of the children's advertisement float up the fireplace. Enter Mary Poppins (Andrews), the "practically perfect" nanny who arrives to interview for the job with the children's advertisement in her hand, all taped together.

What follows are a wonderful series of adventures including a magical housecleaning of the nursery, a tea party on the ceiling, a country holiday in a sidewalk chalk drawing, and a dance session on the rooftops of London with about 100 chimney sweeps.

This is movie magic at its zenith, and it is just as entertaining now as it was 50 years ago. It is definitely a family film, but there are lovely adult touches in the screenplay...I love the way it is implied that Mary and Bert (Dick Van Dyke), the chimney sweep/jack-of-all-trades, have met before this movie takes place but it is never really discussed. I also love the way Mary never admits to having any kind of magic powers and after each adventure tells the children it was all in their imagination.

This was the most memorable example of mixing live action with animation during the "Jolly Holiday" scene, which is absolutely delightful.

The sublime musical score includes "A Spoonful of Sugar", "Chim Chim Cheree" (which won the Oscar for Best Song), "Step in Time", and of course "Supercalifragilistiexpialidocious."

Andrews and Van Dyke are given solid support from Tomlinson and Glynis Johns as Mr. and Mrs. Banks, Hermione Baddeley as their maid, Reta Shaw as their cook, Ed Wynn as Uncle Albert, and Arthur Treacher as a Constable.


If you have never seen this film, or more importantly, if your kids have never seen it, go out and get the DVD today because this film continues to enchant generation after generation because it is the perfect family film.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Poppins4.jpg
Views:	4079
Size:	85.4 KB
ID:	14940   Click image for larger version

Name:	Poppins1.jpg
Views:	2774
Size:	314.2 KB
ID:	14941   Click image for larger version

Name:	Poppins3.jpg
Views:	2400
Size:	312.4 KB
ID:	14942   Click image for larger version

Name:	Poppins2.jpg
Views:	2381
Size:	64.9 KB
ID:	14943  




Max Dugan Returns is a lightweight comedy from Neil Simon about a widowed schoolteacher (Marsha Mason) with a young son (Matthew Broderick, in his film debut), struggling to make ends meet, who one night is reunited with her estranged father (Jason Robards), who shows up on her doorstep wanting to make up for lost time with $687,000.00 in tow. Mason is reluctant to get involved with Dad because the money is not really his but when she learns that he is dying, she softens and decides to grant his dying wish...to spend some of his final time on earth with his grandson.

Throw into the mix a police detective (Donald Sutherland) who, upon finding out who Max is, is definitely torn between getting his man and or getting the girl.

This comedy charms from start to finish with a lot of classic Neil Simon one-liners and Robards turns in one of his most charming performances as Max Dugan. Yes, there are plot points that are left dangling and you just have to accept that, but if you can, Max Dugan Returns is a delightful and diverting comedy that will grown on you with multiple viewings. 7/10
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Max1.jpg
Views:	1999
Size:	20.8 KB
ID:	14944   Click image for larger version

Name:	Max3.jpg
Views:	2150
Size:	13.3 KB
ID:	14945   Click image for larger version

Name:	Max2.jpg
Views:	159
Size:	46.9 KB
ID:	14946  



Meet the Fockers was the 2004 sequel to the surprise hit Meet the Parents, in which Greg and Pam Focker (Ben Stiller and Teri Polo) along with Pam's parents (Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner) take a road trip with Pam's infant nephew, to meet Greg's parents, played by Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand.

I must admit upon hearing there was going to be a sequel to Meet the Parents, I expected something along the lines of watching Greg and Jack Burns (De Niro) learning how to get along as son-in-law and father-in-law, but this sequel skips right over that period of adjustment and has Greg and Jack almost friendly with each other as they prepare to meet their in-laws, who are nothing like the straight-laced Burns family.

Bernie Focker (Hoffman) is a stay-at-home husband and wife Roz (Streisand) is a sexual therapist and naturally they are the polar opposites of Jack and Dina Burns, wild, free-spirited people who say what is on their mind at all times and don't seem to care if people hear them having sex in their bedroom.

Personally, I think Hoffman practically steals this film as the fiercely loyal yet slightly demented Bernie Focker, whether it's defending his son's lack of scholastic achievements or working diligently at satisfying his wife's sexual appetite. Hoffman just seems to be having a ball here and it really shows in his performance and it's not easy stealing scenes from Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro but Hoffman does just that.

Even Streisand is more controlled than usual and gives a nicely modulated performance as Greg's sexually uninhibited Mom. Even though it wasn't the story I was expecting, I found Meet the Fockers quite entertaining, anchored by a brilliant comic turn by Dustin Hoffman as Bernie Focker.

Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Focker1.jpg
Views:	3797
Size:	263.5 KB
ID:	14947   Click image for larger version

Name:	Focker2.jpg
Views:	2535
Size:	32.5 KB
ID:	14948   Click image for larger version

Name:	Focker3.jpg
Views:	2276
Size:	28.9 KB
ID:	14949   Click image for larger version

Name:	Focker4.jpg
Views:	2622
Size:	46.0 KB
ID:	14950  




1996's Michael is warm and winning comedy-fantasy that features one of my favorite performances from the John Travolta library. Travolta gives one of his breeziest and most likable performances as Michael, an archangel whose quiet existence at the home of a lonely innkeeper named Pansy (Jean Stapleton) is disrupted when Pansy reports Michael's presence in her home to a "National Enquirer"-like newspaper and the editor (Bob Hoskins) sends reporters (William Hurt, Andie McDowell, Robert Pastorelli) to the motel to check it out.

Hurt, McDowell, and Pastorelli are quite good as the jaded news staffers who have a hard time accepting they've met an angel but this is Travolta's show and he rules as the pot-bellied, sugar-eating, cookie-smelling, pie-loving, Aretha-loving, bull-chasing Michael, an angel who just isn't what you think you of when you think of angels. And you have to love the scene in the bar when he and the ladies dance to "Chain of Fools". I love this movie more and more every time I watch it and it's mainly because of the completely winning performance from John Travolta.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	michael poster.jpg
Views:	1951
Size:	25.9 KB
ID:	14951   Click image for larger version

Name:	Michael.jpg
Views:	2255
Size:	12.8 KB
ID:	15547  



Next to Hope Floats, Sandra Bullock has not been seen to better advantage on screen than she was in the 2000 comedy Miss Congeniality.

Bullock turned in sharp comic performance as Gracie Hart, an over anxious FBI agent who goes undercover as a beauty pageant contestant when it is learned someone is planning to kill whoever takes the crown.

Director Donald Petrie guides Bullock with a sure hand and never allows her to go over the top with what could have been a purely slapstick female version of Ace Ventura...the comedy comes from a well-thought story with likable characters played by competent actors. Michael Caine shines as Victor Melling, the washed up contestant coach who is hired to make Sandra look like a real beauty pageant contestant ("The eyebrows...there should be two!"). Candice Bergen is beautifully bitchy as pageant director Cathy Morningside and Benjamin Bratt is a sexy and charismatic love interest for Bullock. And let's not forget William Shatner, warming up for his BOSTON LEGAL role here as the dim pageant host, Stan Fields. And special mention to Heather Burns, who makes the most of her role as Cheryl Frazier, Miss Rhode Island, the naive contestant Gracie befriends. A delightful comedy that just gets funnier on repeat viewings.

Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Congenial1.jpg
Views:	2076
Size:	19.0 KB
ID:	14952   Click image for larger version

Name:	Congenial2.jpg
Views:	7254
Size:	44.1 KB
ID:	14953  




Movie, Movie is a forgotten gem from the late 70's which is an affectionate spoof of a 1930's double feature (there's even a preview of coming attractions) that is divided into two separate films that run about 50 minutes a piece.

The first film, "Dynamite Hands" is a black and white "Golden Boy"-type spoof with Harry Hamlin as a young boxer rising to the top with George C. Scott as his manager, Red Buttons as his trainer, Kathleen Beller as his hometown girlfriend and Ann Reinking as a nightclub singer named Troubles Moran.

The second film is called "Baxter's Beauties of 1933" and is a colorful spoof of films like 42nd Street with George C. Scott featured again as the egomaniacal director, Barry Bostwick as the idealistic young songwriter, Rebecca York as the young Ruby Keeler type and Trish VanDevere as the bitchy diva who York eventually replaces.

True movie buffs and fans of these kinds of movies will be in cinema heaven here...a loving tribute to a bygone era that works thanks to spirited direction by Stanley Donen and an energetic cast.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	movie-movie-movie-poster-1978-1020235365.jpg
Views:	1953
Size:	125.9 KB
ID:	14955  



In Multiplicity, Michael Keaton works extremely hard as a contractor named Doug Kinney who is so stressed out by work that he doesn't have time for his family or anything else for that matter.

He meets a doctor(Harris Yulin) who is experimenting in the science of cloning, who persuades Doug to have himself cloned so that he can have more time with his family. Doug #2 is all about work (or so Doug thinks)leaving Doug more time with his wife (Andie McDowell)and kids, but Doug gets spoiled and decides he needs even more time so he gets cloned again and Doug #3 is very domestic and is an expert in the kitchen, very Felix Unger-like to the point where he starts criticizing McDowell about her skills in the kitchen, but this does free up Doug more and allow McDowell the opportunity to return to work. However, Doug #2 and #3 start getting stressed out and, unbeknownst to Doug, create Doug #4 and the complications that ensue are predictable but the fun in this picture is watching the skill with which Keaton makes each Doug different from the previous one.

Actually Doug #3, the domestic one, is my favorite and he is hysterically funny when Doug #2 gets sick and #3 has to go to work for him and is absolutely clueless about the work and gets Doug fired. Once Doug #4 (who being a copy of a copy, turns out to be kind of retarded)appears on the scene, the film begins to lose its momentum but it's a fun ride for most of the way, thanks to remarkable work by Michael Keaton.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Multi1.jpg
Views:	1994
Size:	127.4 KB
ID:	14956   Click image for larger version

Name:	Multi2.jpg
Views:	2022
Size:	132.9 KB
ID:	14957  




Murphy's Romance is a lovely 1985 comedy about a divorcée (Sally Field) with a young son (Corey Haim)who is trying to begin a new life in a small town and finds herself inexplicably attracted to the local pharmacist (James Garner) who is several years older than she is and also must deal with her ex-husband (Brian Kerwin) re-entering her life. Aided by a strong screenplay, Field has rarely been more appealing on screen but it is Garner who really shines here in such a laid back and breezy performance that it earned the actor his very first Oscar nomination for Best Actor. If you're a fan of the stars, you will be utterly charmed by this warm and winning comedy.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Murphy.jpg
Views:	2092
Size:	24.7 KB
ID:	14958  




The 1982 comedy My Favorite Year was a lovingly made period piece that takes place during a wonderful time in entertainment history...the infancy of live television in the 1950's (or more specifically, YOUR SHOW OF SHOWS).

This laugh-filled comic romp follows the adventures of Benji (Mark Linn-Baker), a gopher for COMEDY CALVACADE (this film's version of YOUR SHOW OF SHOWS), who is excited when a swashbuckling actor of the period named Alan Swann (Peter O'Toole) has been booked as a guest on the show turns out to be a skirt-chasing alcoholic who Benji is put in charge of keeping under control until showtime.

This movie is a lovely valentine to the 1950's with exquisite period detail and an intelligent screenplay that invokes the period so beautifully. O'Toole gives the performance of a lifetime as Swann, an alternately laugh out loud funny and heartbreakingly warm performance that earned him an Oscar nomination, yet Linn-Baker somehow manages to hold his own and never allows O'Toole to blow him off the screen.

O' Toole and Linn-Baker get solid support from Lainie Kazan as Benji's mother, Joseph Bologna as King Kaiser, the star of Comedy Calvacade, Cameron Mitchell as a not-too bright gangster, and Adolph Green as the manic producer of the show. A good looking, superbly written comedy that documents a long gone era in entertainment history and tells a warm and amusing story as well. Later turned into a Broadway musical with Lainie Kazan reprising her role as Benji's mother.

Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Favorite1.jpg
Views:	1956
Size:	16.8 KB
ID:	14959   Click image for larger version

Name:	Favorite2.jpg
Views:	2164
Size:	53.8 KB
ID:	14960   Click image for larger version

Name:	Favorite3.jpg
Views:	2019
Size:	99.4 KB
ID:	14961   Click image for larger version

Name:	Favorite4.jpg
Views:	2020
Size:	53.3 KB
ID:	14962  




My Six Loves was an entertaining family comedy from the 1960's that stars Debbie Reynolds as a musical comedy star who is sent to her country home after being told by doctors that she is exhausted and needs major time off. She and her assistant (Eileen Heckart)arrive at her country home and shortly after her arrival, Reynolds discovers six orphans secretly living on her property. The story is routine, the situations predictable and the story pretty much moves in the expected directions, but it's a relatively entertaining journey with Reynolds at the peek of her charm, receiving able assistance from Heckart, Cliff Robertson as a neighborhood minister, and a surprisingly funny David Janssen as her fast-talking agent. The kids are cute and work well with the star. It ain't Chekhov, but it will keep you awake for 90 minutes.
Attachments
Click image for larger version

Name:	Mysix.jpg
Views:	2107
Size:	64.2 KB
ID:	14963